Stratford – take 2. July 2012

Wanderlust

Thumbs up! Enjoyed very much – great fun! A World Premiere, I am reminded. Comedy, with a half serious theme! Directed by Morris Panych (who did other things at the Festival – I remember his “Moby Dick” of a few years ago), based on the book he also wrote, using Robert Service’s poems (Service is the hero of this play) – including “the Cremation of Sam McGee” which is fully “reincarnated” in the play! Service was in effect a real Canadian poet of a hundred years ago or about, writing popular stuff glorifying the North, Yukon, and the (Klondike) Gold Rush – he seems to be known around by anyone that can remember their introductory high school course on Canadian literature – but not in my part of the world, I don’t remember him! But how could I ever forget him now!!! Great performances by all actors (I recognised the formidable Lucy Peacock!), especially of course Tom Rooney in the role of Service, and also Randy Hughson in the role of the bank manager and Sam McGee...We should not forget also the great (great? Some would argue...) score, played live, at the back of the stage, composed and orchestrated by Marek Norman.

(Checked Service on the Net – being French Canadian and having never heard of him before, I had to fill that gap in my ‘culture’ no! Turns out that our great “bard of the Yukon”, had a long life – 1874 to 1956; was born in England, and ended up spending more time in Paris than in the Yukon! Only a short while in Canada, as compared to Europe and the USA as a matter of fact! He did publish poems and novels about the North early on while in western Canada working for a bank (the setting for the play); his writings turned out to be very popular and made him a fortune that must have helped supporting him all those years after of what seems to have been a life of leisure– he married a Parisienne, a much younger woman who survived him some 30 years, until 1989!)



The Best Brothers

Another World Premiere! This time a play about 2 brothers “healing” (sort of!) after their mother’s unexpected death. Contemporary. Two very different persons – one is a married (loosely!) architect, and the other is a gay, real estate salesman – sorting out their lives and relationships through a series of tableaux, dealing with their mother’s “passing” (to use the expression that eventually will make it in the obituary...) The mother, incarnated by one of the brothers from time to time (whenever one of them puts on the green gloves) and the elusive dog, Enzo (which really only appears “en chair et en os” at the curtain call!) turned out to be key props in the play, explaining the behavior and the relationship between the two boys...the dialogue and the “problèmatique” reminds me a bit of Harold Pinter’s style...!



Hirsch

Yet another World Premiere! A one-man show (Alon Nashman). A very complex play – more complex than anything I have seen so far this year (and probably even before) at Stratford. Hirsch, a Hungarian war refugee, ended up in Canada (Winnipeg) and directing the Stratford Festival for the first half of the 80’s. He was, by this account and that of a few people that knew him and that I could talk to, a harsh man! Very intense, with a glare ‘that reminded one of Rasputine’ to put it in the words of someone who worked with him and was in fear every time he encountered him! Complex in the sense that it is not easy to follow – you almost have to know about him first; as a background, for it is not a biography, a documentary, as much as a rendition of his passion and vision of theatre illustrated by the events in his life...


Henry V

Spectacular! Opening on the very day, 60 years ago exactly, that the Festival had its first representation! A “King Henry V” still a bit too “wet behind the ears” though! Regret that director (McAnuff) did not give role of the king of France’s daughter, Catherine, to a French speaking actor (there are plenty in Montreal that could have done it!) – budget constraints or insensitivity to Canada’s French-speaking reality? Don’t know, but in a country like ours, it is hard to excuse that better French cannot be spoken when required...



New “culinary” discoveries: Pazzo Ristorante (upstairs or street level) – a mixture of antipasti (insalata di frutti di mare; sardine fritte; burrata; salami) at the bar; and pork (prepared 3 ways – delicious!) and chicken breast at the main dining room. Mercer Hall, new restaurant; had lunch over small salad (“butter Crunch Lettuce”) and Sauvignon Blanc (KATO of Marlborough winery, N.Z.); and dinner (with André & Sylvia, Eric and Cynthia) – Chicken Liver Mousse and Seared Scallops for antipasti, and risotto, duck, trout and steak frites, with glasses of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Secco, plus some local and imported cheese!

The 5km run in the cemetery. I always marvel at the reach (mid 19th century) and the physical spread of this cemetery. As I keep quipping, I bet there are more people buried here than living souls in Stratford today – I thought of checking this (with whom: City Hall? Which congregation - this is a multidenominational cemetery ...) but I’d rather stay on my belief...

Stratford, July 13, 2012